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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24970933">Just Another Day of Endless Wonder in the Expanse</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jojobevco/pseuds/Jojobevco'>Jojobevco</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Eureka (TV), The Expanse (TV), The Expanse Series - James S. A. Corey, Warehouse 13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Gen</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 00:33:28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>9,859</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24970933</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jojobevco/pseuds/Jojobevco</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>While on vacation, Warehouse Agent Julie Mao discovers something extrasolar. It's up to Eureka and the Warehouse to investigate the terrifying wonders of the Expanse, and try to keep humanity from tearing itself apart in the face of change.<br/>Story occurs in a shared Eureka/Warehouse 13/Expanse universe.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Prologue and Chapter One: The Message</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>So, this is an idea I've had kicking around in the back of my head since the Expanse premiered on Syfy. What if the Expanse was set in the far future of Eureka and Warehouse 13? Given that as far as fanfiction goes, they're kinda niche, I figured I'd test the waters.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>Prologue: Julie</strong>
</p>
<p>Julie had enough. She had been stuck in this cell for 8 days. Cell was a polite term. Storage Locker was more accurate. Eight days of emergency rations, of explosions, gunfire, screams, and, then, nothing. </p>
<p>Three days ago, the crew had stopped responding to her screams, had stopped delivering food, had stopped everything. The ship had stopped accelerating.  It was time to make a stand. Her father, or his men rather, could not keep her locked in this locker forever.</p>
<p>Julie balanced her weight against hatch and shoved it hard with her back, she did it again, and on the fourth time, it burst open.</p>
<p>Julie floated out into the hallway and magnetized her boots.  She took a moment to tie down her wild hair. As she did, she realized she would need to visit a hair salon when she got back to Ceres, Zero-g did funny things to hair. She looked around; the ship was not accelerating. She saw some blood in the hallway. As she was walking, Julie saw a control panel, that declared an SOS alert in Engineering. Julie started walking to the aft section of the ship. As she walked, she passed more bloodstains, tools, and an empty vac suit. The lighting was down to emergency levels. She shook her head; something was not right. She pulled out a pair of gloves and put them on, right before she saw glowing blue goop, for lack of a better word on the wall.</p>
<p>She got to Engineering, with the only closed door on the ship. Julie tried overriding the lock, but without success. She walked back and grabbed the cutting torch she had passed. In minutes, she cut through the door and walked through. The Engineering section was darker than it should have been, and the reactor was a pulsing mass of something. Then she saw what used to be a human writhing in agony. Her eyes widened. She looked down at her purple gloves and sighed. Warehouse Agent Julie Mao’s vacation was quite clearly over.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <strong>Chapter One:</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>The Message</strong>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <strong>Five Days Earlier</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>Ceres Station</strong>
</p>
<p>Josephus Miller was walking through the Ceres Market, looking over the latest imports from Ganymede station. He was debating the purchase of an apple as he listened to the impassioned speech of a local, regarding the rights of Ceres citizens.</p>
<p>Miller mused that he was technically a Ceres citizen. He was born and raised here. Now, though, he stood apart. He had ever since Ms. Claudia Donovan smacked him over the head with an invitation to endless wonder.</p>
<p>“Hey you, Badge!”</p>
<p>Of course, it’s not like someone sent a memo to the rest of the station. Miller turned around and looked at the speaker.</p>
<p>“Day is coming soon, caya? And when the blood is on the wall what side you on SasaCae?”</p>
<p>“Yeah, I’ll know.” Miller’s on the side of humanity, not the belters, or the inners, but all of them.</p>
<p>“See you then, Welwalla.”</p>
<p>Miller scoffed to himself. To the rest of the station, he was a senior member of Star Helix Security on detached assignment. He answered directly to the bosses on Earth. He was the ultimate traitor to his people. That was true, from a certain point of view, in that his superiors were on Earth. However, were not part of the UN, and certainly were not some two-bit security corporation. They were dedicated to the continuing survival of humanity. Miller walked away, toward a noodle shop nearby. As he sat down to lunch, his comm buzzed. He flipped the top and a message popped up:</p>
<p>
  <em>Farnsworth V 5.3</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Delayed Delivery Message</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>From: Agent Julie Mao. </em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>A video appeared, of Julie sitting at her desk.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"Miller, if you’re getting this, then I’m in trouble and I screwed up. Pass this along to Ms. Donovan and tell her I’m sorry.”</em>
</p>
<p>As Miller listened, he started frowning. His bowl of noodles sat uneaten. This was not good, at all.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <strong>
    <em>Eurekan Space Ship (ESS) Henry Deacon</em>
  </strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>En Route to Earth</strong>
</p>
<p>“Ship’s Log, <em>ESS Deacon</em>, Captain James Holden commanding. We are presently undercover as the Beratnas Gas Freighter <em>Rocinante</em>. Our current mission is to escort an Artifact from Vesta back to the Warehouse. Systems are functioning at 98% efficiency and we expect to arrive at Home Plate in five days at present speed. End Log.”</p>
<p>Holden turned to his pilot and executive officer. Lieutenant Commander Alex Kamal, “All good, Alex?”</p>
<p>Alex nodded, “Smooth sailing, Boss. Slow as molasses in January, but smooth.”</p>
<p>“You know the drill; no speed runs inside of the Asteroid Belt unless it’s an emergency.”</p>
<p>“I know, stealth and all that, but seriously, we have the fastest beauty out here; just once I’d like to see what she can do.”</p>
<p>Holden tapped Alex on the shoulder, “Tell you what, after we do this milk run, I’ll get us cleared out to Eris for a bit. Then we can see what these new inertial compensators can take.”</p>
<p>“Sounds sweet, Boss.”</p>
<p>“I’m going to get some coffee, I’ll be back.”</p>
<p>“Bring me back a cup, would you?”</p>
<p>Holden nodded and climbed down from the cockpit and past the empty Operations Deck. He stepped to the hatch and pressed the call button. A moment later, the hatch opened, and there was an anti-grav pad waiting. He stepped on the pad and announced, “Galley.”</p>
<p>The pad slowly descended through the ship until he reached the galley. There, he found his tactical officer, Lieutenant Roberta “Bobbie” Draper nursing her own cup of coffee. The Samoan moved to stand as he approached. Holden waved her back down.</p>
<p>“Good morning, Lieutenant.”</p>
<p>“Sir.” Bobbie turned back to system’s daily news feed on her handled</p>
<p>As he put a pod in the coffee maker, he asked, “How is our package?”</p>
<p>The New Zealander powerful shoulders shrugged, “Contained. What is it exactly?”</p>
<p>Holden chuckled a bit, “Neil Armstrong’s Left Sock according to the manifest.”</p>
<p>“Just the left?”</p>
<p>“Warehouse has the right one. No idea how it ended out at Vesta.”</p>
<p>“Properties?”</p>
<p>“Lunar gravity projection.”</p>
<p>Bobbie shook her head, her straight black hair swaying from side as she did “Lovely. A sock that makes you bunny hop like you’re on Luna.”</p>
<p>Holden corrected, “Or, depending on what rock you’re on, puts lead in your boots.”</p>
<p>Holden pulled his coffee cup out of the maker and inhaled deeply. He took a moment to admire the steam coming off the liquid surface. As he was about to take a sip, the comm chimed.</p>
<p>
  <em>"Flight Deck to Holden: Captain, you and Bobbie better get up here, we got a message from home.”</em>
</p>
<p>Holden walked back over and pushed the call button twice, summoning two anti-grav pads to take him and Bobbie back to the Ops Deck. Alex had stepped away from his pilot seat and was standing at the conference table/tactical plot in the center of the deck.</p>
<p>Holden asked, “What is it?”</p>
<p>Alex gestured at the plot, “See for yourself.”</p>
<p>Holden pulled up the tight-beam text message. It was mostly verification codes for the Deacon’s onboard computer, with one word, “Fastball.”</p>
<p>Bobbie shook her head, “We’re already on our way home, what could be so urgent to get us back there now?”</p>
<p>Alex waved his hand at the message on the table, “Or so secretive? Sending a one-word recall code under our tightest encryption is not exactly standard, it’s not even like they can break our lesser stuff.”</p>
<p>Holden nodded, “Well, we’ll find out soon enough. Alex, charge the FTL and get us docking coordinates, Bobbie, get the Landing Field on the line and get strapped in.”</p>
<p>While Faster-than-Light travel was not exactly a daily occurrence on the <em>Deacon</em>, it happened on a regular basis. One of the successes of the failed <em>Astreaus </em>mission to Titan at the turn of the 21<sup>st</sup> century had been the development of an FTL drive that allowed for near instantaneous travel within the Sol’s heliopause.</p>
<p>While the theoretical limit of the drive was measured in light-years, it had never been used outside the solar system. Over the past few years, Eureka had used the <em>Deacon </em>and her sister ship, the <em>Douglas Fargo</em>, to release a series FTL communication experiments at the edge of the stem. In short, these experiments were making sure future missions could call home in a timely fashion.</p>
<p>Holden shook his head, sat in his chair on the Operations Deck, and strapped in, He connected his sub-dermal commlink to the external system, as Bobbie came over the comm, <em>“Sir, I have the Catcher’s Mitt on the line.”</em></p>
<p>Holden addressed the control tower about two AU away, “Catcher’s Mitt, this is <em>Deacon</em>, ready for a fastball.”</p>
<p>“Deacon, <em>this is Catcher’s Mitt 01 we are ready to receive on your count.”</em></p>
<p>Holden replied, “Acknowledged, Catcher’s Mitt, Alex, at your discretion.”</p>
<p>Alex’s voice came over the comm, <em>“Coordinates set, thrusters secured, and drive charged. Here comes the goo. Oh, by the way, you owe me a coffee, Jim.”</em></p>
<p>Holden rolled his eyes, “It’s free, Kamal.”</p>
<p>Eureka’s own blend of G-Juice was based on almost 250 years of studying FTL g-stress. While the inertial compensators on the <em>Deacon</em> kept force from going above 6.3g on even the most extreme sub-light maneuvers, it was still possible for a crew to blackout from the stress of FTL travel. The ‘Goo’ prevented that from happening. Holden felt the mild tingling sensation of it coursing into his veins.</p>
<p>
  <em>"Uh, huh, Captain, jump in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1”</em>
</p>
<p>For a moment, Holden felt like he was being shoved through a straw, and then, he blinked, and they were home.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <strong>Landing Field 01</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>Eureka Space Port</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>The City-State of Eureka (Oregon)</strong>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Holden unstrapped himself and walked to the anti-grav lift. He took it to the level below the command deck, where the gantry was rolling out an umbilical to the airlock. As it attached, he was joined by his crew. Bobbie handed him a briefcase containing the artifact that he had retrieved from the Cargo Hold. Holden opened the airlock and was greeted by the Landing Supervisor.</p>
<p>“Sorry, folks, short turn around today. Captain Holden, the Sheriff is waiting downstairs to take you to GD. Commander, Lieutenant, I don’t even think you’ll have time to stop off at Café Diem, but if you want to grab some sun on the port while we’re refueling and replenishing, feel free.” He gestured down to some pallets of supplies being loaded into the cargo bay, and what looked like a science module being traded out for most of the <em>Deacon’s</em> extended machine shop.</p>
<p>Holden nodded and walked through the umbilical to the launch pad. He got in the elevator and took it down to ground level. As he did, he noticed the ground crew quickly removing <em>Deacon’s</em> gas freighter disguise as the paint rippled into the grey and white of the City-State of Eureka Space Service. Wherever his ship was going, apparently the powers that be felt it did not need a cover identity. Holden took a moment to breath in the natural air of Earth, albeit mixed with the smells of fuel and ozone from the spaceport’s support systems.</p>
<p>Building the port outside allowed for the <em>Deacon</em> and her sister ship to take off and land without FTL use if necessary. While Eureka had multiple underground drydocks based on the original Astraeus berth, the port was more economical for standard departures and arrivals.</p>
<p>At ground level he was met by the tan and gold of the City-State of Eureka’s Sheriff. While most vehicles in Eureka were anti-grav, the sheriff’s vehicle remained a four-wheel drive Jeep Cherokee. Supposedly it was for reliability and authenticity, but Holden’s sneaking suspicion was that it was due to the expense of it being totaled on an almost monthly basis. He hopped in the passenger side and buckled the seatbelt.</p>
<p>“Good Morning, Captain.”</p>
<p>Holden looked over at Eureka’s Longest Serving Sheriff as he climbed in, “Is it morning, Sheriff?”</p>
<p>“It is indeed, 0930 Eureka Standard Time.”</p>
<p>“Great, you know this interrupted my morning coffee, right?”</p>
<p>Andy handed him a biodegradable coffee cup, “Got you a Vincespresso.”</p>
<p>As they took off, sirens blaring toward town, Holden commented, “Andy, you are a lifesaver.”</p>
<p>Andy nodded, “3.5 million at last count.”</p>
<p>“Is that individual or does that count duplicates from multiple catastrophes?”</p>
<p>“Individual. Considering the number of times, the City-State has been in danger, the actual-”</p>
<p>Holden held up his hand, “I get the point, how are SARAH and the kids?”</p>
<p>“SARAH is good, she misses having you around the house. The kids are well, raising artificial intelligences can be a bit, nerve-wracking.”</p>
<p>Holden shrugged slightly, “I hear that is most parenting.”</p>
<p>They quickly drove down Main Street and through to Global Dynamics.</p>
<p>“Do you know what is going on or what I am supposed to do with this,” Holden asked, gesturing to the briefcase.</p>
<p>“I don’t know what is going on, but I do know that they’ve called in the entire Triumvirate, so you’ll be able to hand that off directly to Ms. Donovan.”</p>
<p>As they pulled through the already open security gate and parked at the main entrance, Holden commented, “I don’t know if that’s reassuring.”</p>
<p>Sheriff Andy and Holden quickly badged their way through GD security and walked through the atrium to the Director’s Office. Holden gulped slightly at the thought of facing all three Triumvirs at once.</p>
<p>Eureka was ruled by a Board of Regents. Three regents were elected for two-year terms with a two-term limit. One was elected for a four-year term as Mayor, with a two-term limit.</p>
<p>However, the remaining three seats were another story.</p>
<p>One was occupied by the Warehouse Caretaker, Ms. Claudia Donovan. Thanks to the power of the Warehouse’s relationship with its Caretaker, she had served in that position since the mid-21<sup>st</sup> century.</p>
<p>Two were ‘lifetime’ appointments made by Dr. Trevor Grant, the owner of Global Dynamics in his will. Lifetime was relative in Eureka though.</p>
<p>The Director of Administration was Ms. Eva Thorne, a lab assistant, turned corporate efficiency expert, turned diplomat/trade minister/treasurer. Thanks to a substance simply known as Element X and a botched experiment during World War II, she had not aged a day since the 1940s.</p>
<p>The Director of Science was Dr. Holly Marten, an astronomer, with a photonic processer for a brain, who could reprint her body at will.</p>
<p>Because of their positions, the last three were the ‘commanders-in-chief’ of the Eurekan Space Service. Holden’s reporting structure changed based on the assignment. Amazingly, it worked.</p>
<p>He had never met with all three at once though. Holden and Andy walked into the Director of Science’s office off the atrium.  Inside, Dr. Marten was sitting behind her desk, while Ms. Thorne was standing behind her. Ms. Donovan was sitting on the couch, looking through a report. Ms. Thorne greeted them, “Captain Holden, Sheriff Andy, good to see you.”</p>
<p>Holden handed her the briefcase, Ms. Donovan smiled and sarcastically commented, “Ooh, a sock, finally I have a matched pair.”</p>
<p>Thorne winced slightly, hundreds of years and Claudia’s enthusiasm still rubbed her the wrong way, “Thank you for coming back so quickly, Jim.”</p>
<p>“Yes, Ma’am, but no one has told me what is going on.”</p>
<p>Ms. Donovan answered the implied question, “Two hours ago, a message was related to us by Joe Miller, a Warehouse Agent on Ceres station. The message was from the other Warehouse Agent on Ceres, Julie Mao.”</p>
<p>Ms. Donovan waved over to a viewing screen, which played the message, <em>“Miller, if you’re getting this, then I’m in trouble and I screwed up. Pass this along to Ms. Donovan and tell her I’m sorry. About three weeks ago, I picked up chatter about a new bioweapon being developed on Phoebe, something game changing, something that could wreck the balance of power in the system. However, the chatter didn’t point to an artifact, so it’s outside of our mandate. But, with Phoebe being involved, my head is telling me that my father must be involved, and that can’t be good.</em></p>
<p><em>“I’ve rented a freighter, the </em>Scopuli<em>, to take me to intercept the bioweapon, as it’s being moved, I’m not sure where, possibly for testing.” Julie shook her head and smiled a bit, “Don’t worry, I used my own account, not the expense account. If you’re receiving this message, then I’ve missed a check in. All my data is on my terminal in my apartment. I hope you and the Warehouse can put it to some good.” </em></p>
<p>
  <em>Julie gave a watery smile, “Joe, don’t come looking for me, don’t let Ms. Donovan go looking for me, this is something that we can’t risk the Warehouse for, we can’t risk what we do. Joe, I…I’m sorry.”</em>
</p>
<p>The message ended, Ms. Donovan picked up the briefing, “Obviously we’re going after her. The <em>Fargo </em>is scouring the space-lanes between Ceres, Pheobe, and Eros, but all three are on opposite ends of the system this time of year, so it’s going to take a while.” Ms. Donovan flicked a 3-D map of the solar system up in the room to demonstrate this.</p>
<p>Andy asked, “Her terminal?”</p>
<p>Ms. Donovan shook her head, “The one in her apartment was wrecked before Agent Miller got there. He’s trying, but it’s going to take some time, and some…gumshoe work.”</p>
<p>Holden commented. “The <em>Deacon</em> can obviously join the search, but I’m not sure why you called us back here to discuss it.”</p>
<p>James Holden had known Holly Marten his entire life. When he was younger, she was his babysitter. She was best friends with his family’s house. She was always chipper and happy, bit of a talker. Yet today, she had said nothing. Until now, “We got an Article Twelve request.”</p>
<p>The Epstein Accords were the bilateral treaty between Earth and Mars which affirmed Martian independence. The Accords were negotiated by Eureka, in their perpetual role as a neutral party to solar system politics. Article Twelve covered the jurisdiction and authority of Eureka and the Warehouse. This included, <em>“The City-State of Eureka shall maintain primary jurisdiction over all matters of extra solar affairs and items beyond human understanding.”</em></p>
<p>“An hour after we got the message from Ceres, Captain Theresa Yao of the <em>MCRN Donnager</em> contacted us with a disturbing report of a disaster at a research station on Phoebe. Caused by unknown means.”</p>
<p>Holden’s eyebrows rose as his eyes widened, “Which means whatever Agent Mao was after, is under our jurisdiction.”</p>
<p>Thorne nodded, “Presumably. Jim, understand this, in 128 years, the Martians have never filed an Article Twelve request before. In every case of artifact retrieval, we’ve had to assert jurisdiction. Whatever is on Phoebe has scared them, or at least Captain Yao into doing the right thing.” Eva sounded scared. Holden had known her for most of his life. Eva was Holden’s many times great aunt. When Holden’s father, a resident of Eureka had met his mother on a UN inspection tour of the Midwest, she had no idea that she had a distant ancestor living in Eureka. It was surprising to say the least.</p>
<p>Dr. Marten continued, “Phoebe is officially believed to have come from the Kuiper Belt. However, recent theories, backed up by the <em>Columbus</em> Archive here in Eureka, suggest it could be from much further away. This could be an extra-solar incident!” Now Holly was sounding excited.</p>
<p>Thorne cleared her throat while Ms. Donovan smiled indulgingly before Holly continued, “The Deacon will escort Sheriff Andy and myself to Phoebe to investigate the Article Twelve request and Agent Mao’s disappearance. We are ready to leave now.”</p>
<p>Ms. Donovan jumped in before they could leave, “Captain, Agent Mao’s father is Jules-Pierre Mao, the sole owner of Mao-Kwikowski Mercantile. If he is somehow involved, he is dangerous.”</p>
<p>Thorne added her thoughts too, “It also means that both Earth and Mars were doing something on Phoebe, something dangerous, without us.”</p>
<p>Holly stood, “We’ll figure it out though!”</p>
<p>She almost skipped out the door, Holden and Andy following close behind.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter Two: Article Twelve</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>Chapter Two: Article Twelve</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>
    <em>ESS Deacon</em>
  </strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>Eureka Space Port, Eureka</strong>
</p>
<p>               The Sheriff’s vehicle drove up to the <em>Deacon’s </em>pad. Holden was carrying a tray with coffee cups, while Andy was talking on the commlink built into his systems, “I love you too sweetie.” He hung up the ‘phone’ with a twitch of his head. Dr. Marten was pushing an antigrav with a large black container cube and a duffle bag. They got in the large elevator and ascended to the gantry. As they were walking across, they saw Lieutenant Commander Kamal signing a digital pad with his biometrics.</p>
<p>Alex turned to them, “Captain, welcome back,” he turned to the other two, “Dr. Marten, Sheriff, welcome aboard the <em>Henry Deacon</em>.”</p>
<p>               Holden handed him a Vincespresso and walked inside the ship, followed by Holly and Andy. Andy and Holden went up to the Operations Deck. He handed the other Vincespresso to Bobbie who was double checking the manifest.</p>
<p>               “What did we get, Bobbie?”</p>
<p>               Bobbie showed him the manifest, “Full complement of weapons, the variety pack apparently. Full restock on food and fuel. They swapped out most of the machine shop for a science lab. So, we’re loaded for bear on a science mission? What is going on, Captain?”</p>
<p>               Holden shook his head, “Could be nothing, could be everything.” He taped his comm behind his right ear, “Everyone, this is the Captain, please proceed to departure stations.” Within a few minutes, everyone had made their way to the Operations Deck and strapped in. Alex and Holden climbed up to the flight deck and strapped into the pilot and captain’s chair, respectively. “Alex, prepare an FTL Jump to .1 AU from Pheobe, that should be outside the <em>Donnager’s</em> sensor net.”</p>
<p>               “Copy that, calculating coordinates.” Alex punched in the appropriate calculations and communicated with ground control, “Pitcher 01, this is <em>Deacon</em>, ready for fastball to coordinates, over.”</p>
<p>               <em>“</em>Deacon<em> this is Pitcher 01, copy, priming FTL.”</em></p>
<p>Holden glanced at the aft view camera, the pad beneath the <em>Deacon</em> opened and a blue light flooded out from the FTL launcher</p>
<p>               <em>“</em>Deacon,<em> this is Pitcher 01, FTL primed, launch in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Launch.”</em></p>
<p>A field engulfed the ship and it blinked out of existence. The crew felt like they were shoved through a straw, before they emerged in the black of space.</p>
<p>               Once Holden’s eyes blinked a few times, he turned to Alex, “Alex, plot an intercept course at 8g acceleration, uncompensated, using the Epstein. Let’s open the valve a bit.”</p>
<p>               Alex punched some commands in. “Aye, sir, 8g uncomp. ETA is 10.8 hours with turnover in 5.4.”</p>
<p>               Holden felt the ship hum with vibration as the engine fired up and he quickly glanced at an engineering display. The inertial compensators were online. Eureka had developed compensator technology that made ‘high g’ maneuvers, which would have most crews in the system strapped to crash couches and overdosing on juice, routine. Of course, given how the failure of the system would result in what was professionally referred to as ‘<em>SPLAT!</em>’ there were multiple emergency backup systems which could engage in less than a nanosecond.</p>
<p>               Holden and Alex unstrapped themselves and headed down to the Operations Deck where Bobbie, Holly, and Andy were gathered around the conference table. Holly had pulled up a 3D live hologram of Phoebe, with the <em>Donnager </em>in orbit, as she began the briefing, “Phoebe, irregular satellite of the Saturn sub-system, first spotted by humans at the turn of the 20<sup>th</sup> century, with the first flyby in 2004 by the space probe <em>Cassini</em>. Officially, it is believed to have come from the Kuiper belt, formerly as a round moon, battered by billions of years of impacts. As far as anyone outside of Eureka knows, that is the official account.”</p>
<p>               Holden added in, “This next part is not to be discussed with the Martians.”</p>
<p>               Holly nodded and continued, “Eureka, however, has a different theory. Based on the <em>Columbus</em> Mission Archives retrieved in 2009 and the limited information we have decrypted from the Akashic Field, we have an enhanced understanding of orbital mechanics. We think it is probable that Phoebe originated outside the Sol System.”</p>
<p>               Bobbie asked a question, “Why did Eureka not dispatch a team to study Phoebe, Ma’am?”</p>
<p>               Holly replied, “At the time, we were focused on Titan. Also, it is important to note that it is not the only exo-solar object in our system. Bee-Zed is in the vicinity of Jupiter and interstellar objects pass within the Trans-Neptunian Region daily. Phoebe is only particularly unusual because of its orbit around Saturn. However, this all changed about eight years ago.</p>
<p>               “Eight years ago, Mars did a manned landing of Phoebe, discovering silicate samples in the ice. They partnered with Protogen corporation of Earth to establish a long-term research facility on the surface. Which brings us to today.”</p>
<p>               Holly waved down the hologram of Phoebe and pulled up some others, Sheriff Andy took over the briefing, “About three hours ago, we received a report that Warehouse Agent Julie Mao had gone on an unauthorized mission involving evidence of a bio-weapons research facility on Phoebe. Agent Mao was headed to Phoebe in a ship named the <em>Scopuli</em> and has gone missing. Two hours ago, we got an Article Twelve request for assistance with an unknown matter from Captain Theresa Yao of the MCRN <em>Donnager</em>. The matter in question is the facility on Phoebe. To further complicate matters, the science station on Phoebe is jointly owned by Mars and Mao-Kwikowski Mercantile.”</p>
<p>               Holden scoffed, “Otherwise known as Agent Mao’s parents, hence why she went off alone on this.”</p>
<p>               Alex asked, “Could she have turned? Just gone AWOL to throw us off?”</p>
<p>               Andy shook his head, “Neither I nor Caretaker Donovan think so, Agent Mao’s disagreements with her father’s business practices are legendary at the Warehouse.”</p>
<p>               Holly got the briefing back on course, “Once we get to Phoebe, I will go to the surface to investigate the Article Twelve, while Sheriff Andy investigates Agent Mao’s disappearance. Captain Holden, you will play nice with Captain Yao. I understand you know her?”</p>
<p>               Holden shook his head, “Know is a bit strong, we met briefly at an anti-piracy conference last year. She thinks I represent a small merchant concern. Bobbie, you will be escorting Dr. Marten. I’m not inclined to let the Regent off the ship without as much security as we can provide.”</p>
<p>               Holly was about to voice her objection but was cut off by Bobbie’s curt, “Yes, Sir.”</p>
<p>               “Alex, that leaves you flying casual.”</p>
<p>               “Roger that, Boss.”</p>
<p>
  <strong>About 10 Hours Later</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>
    <em>MCRN Donnager</em>
  </strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>In Orbit of Phoebe</strong>
</p>
<p>               Captain Theresa Yao briskly walked through her ship. She knew that this was just a hairsbreadth away from treason. Yes, it was technically legal, but never once had Mars asked Eureka for help. The only reason her executive officer was not complaining about it was because whatever was happening down on that science station scared him too.</p>
<p>               Theresa believed in Mars, in the dream of Mars. She believed that one day, humans would be able to walk across the surface without vac suits and to live as a self-sustaining society. Theresa was also pragmatic, she knew that decades of strife with Earth, stretching back to the Epstein Accords, had caused Mars to lose its way. To do some frankly unspeakable things. Theresa was afraid Phoebe was one of them. It might just have ended her career to bring this into the light, but it had to be done.</p>
<p>               Yao arrived at the airlock and quickly dismissed the staff stationed there. This was something she wanted to be discrete. A few moments after docking, they cycled the airlock and in walked a man, wearing a two-piece uniform, dark blue, with red and white piping on the shoulders. The top seemed to be a zippered jacket, with a shirt and tie underneath. There were four silver pips on his upper chest. On his left arm was a patch with a crossed GD superimposed on the image of a frigate. On the right, was a brown patch with an image of Archimedes and the words SEAL OF EUREKA, A POSSE AD ESSE. She realized she knew this man.</p>
<p>               “Mr. Holden?”</p>
<p>               Holden smiled slightly, “Yes, apologies, Captain, but I am not the head of a small merchant concern as I introduced myself last year.” He held out his hand, “Captain James Holden, <em>ESS Deacon</em> at your service. If you wouldn’t mind, my ship would like to detach and start its investigation on the surface as soon as possible.”</p>
<p>               Yao nodded, “Of course,” she closed the airlock and the <em>Deacon </em>quickly detached, headed for the surface. Yao then escorted Holden through the ship, to her ready room. Yao politely offered Holden a bulb of tea, which he politely accepted.</p>
<p>               Holden then spoke up, “Captain Yao, I know you and I know MCRN’s shall we say, unofficial policy, on contacting Eureka, so why did you contact us?”</p>
<p>               Yao looked over to the <em>Donanger’s</em> sensor outputs on her ready room screen, “Because of what we found down there.”</p>
<p>
  <strong>20 Minutes Later</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>Phoebe Research Station</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>Phoebe</strong>
</p>
<p>               Dr. Holly Marten, Sheriff Andy, and Lieutenant Bobbie Draper were slowly working their way through the lab, wearing vacuum suits for appearances sake. They were being accompanied by Commander Kelly Lopez, the <em>Donanger’s</em> Executive Officer.</p>
<p>               “We believe the bodies were burned postmortem. That lead us to suspect terrorism, but once we started analyzing the bodies, we found fragments of extraordinarily complex organic molecules. Further analysis revealed, well, that’s when the Captain decided to call you.” He handed over a pad with their findings, “We’re not a science ship, Dr. Marten, but we can tell when we need to start rewriting the Periodic Table.”</p>
<p>               Holly nodded and looked at the findings from the <em>Donanger’s</em> limited science staff. There were six elements that did not match the periodic table, well, the Martian one.</p>
<p>               Holly pointed at three of the atomic diagrams on the pad, “These three elements are isotopic in nature and present within the Oort Cloud and Heliopause in limited quantities, which is consistent with Phoebe coming from that region. The other three, no one has ever seen before. Wow.”</p>
<p>               Andy looked up from the corpse he was examining, “I can confirm your assumptions on the postmortem burns. However, it seems like the bodies were mutated perimortem.”</p>
<p>               Bobbie, looked up in concern, “Sheriff, what do you mean by ‘mutated’?”</p>
<p>               “Whoever burned these bodies tried to mask it, but they are showing distinct non-human outgrowths, changes to limbs, and in places they seem to have fused into the wall.”</p>
<p>               Commander Lopez questioned, “Because of the fire?”</p>
<p>               Andy shook his head, gently using an MRI Scanner Pen to get a copy of one of the corpses. He gestured Lopez over to the projection that was generated, “Look at this, the burn marks are clearly on top of the corpse and the wall. If the fire had caused it, there would also be signs of charring between the two.”</p>
<p>               Lopez asked, “Any chance of identifying the bodies?”</p>
<p>               Andy shook his head, “Not beyond the fact that they were all Martian civilians.”  He used the MRI pen to generate a copy of the skeleton of one of the corpses, “If you strip away all the unusual growths, the bones are showing characteristics of spaceflight osteopenia for someone who lived in about .3g their entire life.”</p>
<p>               Lopez agreed, “And the MCRN and MMC both operate in 1g enough to have different characteristics.”</p>
<p>               Bobbie glanced down at the pad Commander Lopez had provided them, “Records show a staff of twelve. Six Martians from the Mars Congressional Republic and six Protogen scientists. Four from Earth, one from Ganymede, and one from Mars.”</p>
<p>               Lopez commented, “There are only identifiable remains from six people.”</p>
<p>               Andy concluded, “I think we can assume which six are here.”</p>
<p>               The Eurekans’ Comms chimed with an incoming message, a moment later, Commander Lopez’s did the same. Lieutenant Commander Kamal was on the other line for the Eurekans, <em>“We, and I’m assuming the Martians, just picked up a distress beacon from the </em>Knight<em>, the shuttle of the Pur’n’Kleen Ice Hauler </em>Canterbury. <em>We appear to be the closest ships in range. Get this though, the latest update from P&amp;K’s corporate headquarters puts the </em>Canterbury<em> responding to a distress call from the </em>Scopuli<em>.”</em></p>
<p>Bobbie jumped in, “I’m guessing we didn’t know this until now due to time lag?”</p>
<p>               Andy nodded “Probably, the lag from the <em>Canterbury</em> to Ceres, plus that to the Eureka mainframe, means we would have found out shortly anyway.”</p>
<p>Alex came back on the line, <em>“How will we respond to this?”</em></p>
<p>Captain Holden interjected, <em>“Stand by, I’m discussing with Captain Yao.”</em></p>
<p>               They all stood around for a moment, some kicking their feet, some looking around the destroyed facility. As they did Holly noted spikes on the walls and the ceiling. There was no pattern to them. She walked over to one and touched it. It seemed to crumple into dust as she did, or, more accurately, ash. She struggled to find something comparable to the structure in her photonic processor, eventually, she noted it seemed to act like the ‘rusticles’ that had formed on the <em>RMS Titanic</em> in the late 20<sup>th</sup> century. They formed when iron oxidized in the presence of symbiotic bacteria.</p>
<p>               Just as she was realizing what this meant, Holden came back on the line, <em>“Captain Yao and I have agreed that the </em>Donnager <em>will investigate the distress call. The </em>Deacon<em> will remain here to continue investigating the facility. Send the Sheriff back with the </em>Donnager<em> crew. Commander Lopez will remain with the </em>Deacon<em>.”</em></p>
<p>Around her, the Martian investigative team was packing up and heading back to their lander. Sheriff Andy headed with them, leaving Lieutenant Draper, Commander Lopez, and Dr. Marten looking around the cavern.</p>
<p>               Bobbie looked around asking, “What’s next ma’am?”</p>
<p>               Holly pointed to the spikes, “I want to get a few samples of those, I have a theory.”</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <strong>Tesla Warehouse Inventory Service</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>Central District</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>Ceres Station</strong>
</p>
<p>               The Tesla Warehouse Inventory Service or TWIS was, on paper as a Star Helix Loss Prevention subsidiary. It did nothing of the kind. TWIS was the outpost of Warehouse Agents and Eureka on Ceres.</p>
<p>               Agent Joe Miller was sitting at Julie’s desk. He was pouring through her terminal trying to find some clue as to where Julie went. So far what he had found was that the <em>Scopuli</em> had disappeared shortly after leaving Ceres station. It was picked up on a few tracking stations, but the destinations that had been extrapolated put it headed anywhere in the Belt, Jupiter, or Saturn. Miller forwarded the information on to the <em>ESS Fargo</em> so they could update the search pattern.</p>
<p>               Joe had also tried the latest in Durational Spectrometry, but being limited to using it in the office and Julie’s apartment, he had only discovered the man who had destroyed Julie’s computer was a tall, bulky, non-descript belter who screamed OPA Thug to Miller. That at least gave Miller a starting point. Abandoning his search of Julie’s desk, he started to investigate where the <em>Scopuli </em>came from.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <strong>Two Hours Later</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>
    <em>MCRN Donnager</em>
  </strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>Near CA-2216862</strong>
</p>
<p>               Captain Holden stood in the Martian warship’s CIC, sipping a bulb of coffee. Martian coffee was slightly different from the Earth brew he had in Eureka. It seemed to have a bit more of a bite to it. Holden was not sure what he thought. Extensive taste testing would be required.</p>
<p>               Captain Yao stood across the tactical plot from him, sipping from a large bulb of tea. Meanwhile, the crew was assessing the scene they had come upon.</p>
<p>               The sensors officer, Lieutenant Waterman looked up from her readout and reported, “Debris pattern and EM readings are consistent with one nuclear detonation, but I’m reading two discrete sets of debris.”</p>
<p>               Sheriff Andy walked over and looked at the data, frowning, “Agreed, it looks like the <em>Canterbury</em> was hit by a nuclear torpedo. The debris pattern is indicative of an external blast to the starboard side that pushed through the ship. The debris from that in turn shredded the <em>Scopuli</em>.“</p>
<p>               The communications officer, Ensign Seydou reported from his station, “Captain, the Knight is making a wide beam transmission.”</p>
<p>               Captain Yao shrugged, “Let’s hear it, Ensign.”</p>
<p>               <em>“My name is Ade Nygaard speaking for the four survivors of the </em>Canterbury<em>. Our ship was destroyed answering a bogus SOS from a ship called the </em>Scopuli<em>. We recovered a false beacon identified as Martian naval technology. It was a trap. We are about to be taken aboard the </em>MCRN Donnager.” There was then some sort of scuffle, “<em>We intend to cooperate in the hopes this means we won’t be harmed.” </em>In the background it sounded like a gun was being cocked, “<em>We’re dead anyway. Any such action will only confirm that the Canterbury was destroyed by Mars.”</em></p>
<p>Holden looked over at Yao, who in turn looked at her Comm’s officer, “Please tell me that we were able to jam that.”</p>
<p>               Seydou swallowed, “Unfortunately only after they identified they were going to be taken aboard the Donnager.”</p>
<p>               Holden pinched his nose, this was bad, for a lot of people, “I suppose we should greet our guests?”</p>
<p>               Yao nodded, “Agreed, Captain Holden. Lieutenant Waterman, you have the deck, secure the <em>Knight</em> in the launch bay and have a boarding team take custody of the crew.”</p>
<p>               Holden and Yao left the CIC, headed for the launch bay. In the lift, Jim turned to Captain Yao, “Would Mars have destroyed the <em>Canterbury</em>?”</p>
<p>               Yao was ticked at the suggestion, “Of course not!”</p>
<p>               Holden crossed his arms, “Would Mars have destroyed the <em>Scopuli</em>?”</p>
<p>               Yao was confused, “Why would we have?”</p>
<p>               They stopped at the appropriate deck and got out, Holden spoke in a low voice, “About an hour before we got your Article Twelve request, we found out that the <em>Scopuli</em> was carrying an off-duty Warehouse Agent. That agent was responding to unconfirmed reports of a bioweapon being developed Phoebe. Whatever was tested down there was extra-solar in origin.”</p>
<p>               Yao shook her head, “I, honestly don’t think we would have. I hope we did not. Also, keep in mind the six dead Martians we found.”</p>
<p>               Holden nodded, “I know, that, and your Article Twelve request is the only reason the <em>Deacon</em> didn’t just send you on your merry way in fear of an MCRN coverup.”</p>
<p>               Holden was about to head out toward the before Yao grabbed his arm, “How do I know that Eureka didn’t attack Phoebe station?”</p>
<p>               Holden’s teeth gnashed slightly, “We didn’t know about Phoebe until we got Agent Mao’s message. Also, violence is always a last resort for us. We have hundreds of years of evidence to back that up.”</p>
<p>               They both turned toward the entrance where the crew was being led out. Holden reached over and removed the Velcro arm patches from his uniform. Yao raised an eyebrow, in question. Holden responded as he tucked the patches into a previously invisible pocket, “No need for them to know who I am until they need to.”</p>
<p>               The marines secured the survivors in holding cells as Holden looked at the data pulled from their DNA swabs. Ade Nygaard, former UNN pilot, turned pilot for Pur N’ Kleen, turned First Officer. Shed Garvey, sort of a medic from Earth who flunked out of med school. Amos Burton, a mechanic with an obvious fake ID, and Naomi Nagata, the Chief Engineer with advanced engineering degrees. Quickly, he checked her file, biting back a groan as he saw a flag on the file.</p>
<p>               Citizenship: RESTRICTED, Contact MCR Foreign Ministry if Detained</p>
<p>                “Fuck.”</p>
<p>Now he had to figure out how to explain this to Yao.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Please Review! Thanks for reading</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter Three: Investigations</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Captains Holden and Yao interrogate the Knight crew, Miller continues his investigation amid a riot, and everyone's favorite UN Undersecretary makes an appearance.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>Chapter Three</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>Investigations</strong>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <strong>The Medina</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>Ceres Station</strong>
</p><p>                Joe had given up on the search of Julie’s desk at Julie’s desk and walked out into a civil disturbance. Ms. Donovan called him with the news a few minutes ago. The <em>Scopuli </em>had been found and the ship rescuing them had been destroyed. Of course, as he looked around, he could see Ade Nygaard’s face on every screen telling him that fact. Then he could see the protestors including one gaunt belter riling up the crowd. In the background he walked over to Detectives Olivia Muss and Dimitri Havelock of Star Helix Security.</p><p>                “How’s it going?”</p><p>                Muss smiled, “Miller, this finally enough to get you off of your ‘special operations’ beat?”</p><p>                Miller tipped his hat slightly, “Nope, just passing through on the way to the docks.  I’m surprised you’re out here in plainclothes, where’s the riot gear?”</p><p>                Havelock scratched his head, “We don’t know.”</p><p>                Muss chimed in, “It was weird, the locker was totally cleaned out, we’d investigate, but” she gestured around here, “there are bigger things going on.”</p><p>                Miller looked around, “Yes, I’d best be moving on. Stay safe, Olivia.”</p><p>                Havelock shouted, “What about me?”</p><p>                Miller waved back at him as he walked off, “You, kid, just stay out of trouble.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <strong>MCRN Donnager</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>In the Belt</strong>
</p><p>                Captains Holden and Yao were in an interrogation room, sitting across from Ade Nygaard, the apparent leader of this group of misfits.</p><p>                “Ms. Nygaard, I’m Captain Holden, this is Captain Yao.  We are investigating a series of recent events that you and your crew seem to have gotten wrapped up in.”</p><p>                Ade scoffed, “You all started this mess, Mars destroyed the <em>Canterbury</em>!”</p><p>                Holden shook his head, “Ms. Nygaard, Mars did not destroy your water hauler.”</p><p>                “The ship that destroyed the <em>Cant</em> had stealth technology, the transmitter on the <em>Scopuli</em> that led us there was MCRN technology. Explain that to me.”</p><p>                Yao started fuming and was going to respond, before Holden cut her off, “I can’t Ms. Nygaard. That is why I am asking for your help. Please, tell us what you saw.”</p><p>                Nygaard took a breath, “We received a distress call from the <em>Scopuli</em>, after listening to it for a few hours, I heard something in it, a voice, asking for help.”</p><p>                Yao commented, “Nine times out of ten, distress calls are pirate bait. Why did you log the call?”</p><p>                Ade breathed before answering, “It was a gut instinct. Clearly the wrong one, it got my crew killed.”</p><p>                Holden moved the conversation along, “So, you logged the call and responded. Walk us through what happened next.”</p><p>                “The <em>Cant</em> said we had clear space out to a million kilometers. I led a team over in the <em>Knight</em> to the <em>Scopuli</em>. When we got there, the ship was dead, there was a hole in the side of the ship. It was a breaching charge. Amos and I boarded. The first thing we noticed was that the reactor was shut down. Someone had gone through the effort to turn it off. There weren’t any bodies, and someone had depressurized the ship intentionally. We found a transmitter, your transmitter on the ship. Right after that, a ship showed up right on top of us. It came out of nowhere. It had to be Martian stealth tech. They blew up the <em>Cant</em> and let us go somehow. Next thing we know, the Martian flagship is picking us up. Do you see why we’re suspicious?”</p><p>                Holden stepped out for a moment and talked to Sheriff Andy who was outside. Holden motioned Andy away from the nearby marine and spoke softly, “Pull the data from the <em>Knight</em> and then use your transceiver to forward it back to the <em>Deacon</em>. Something is not right here.” Andy nodded and left. Holden then reentered the interrogation room.</p><p>                “- it was Amos who suggested a breaching charge.”</p><p>                Yao nodded and made a note, “Ah, Amos Burton, we’ll get to him in a moment. First, tell me everything you know about Naomi Nagata.”</p><p>                As he sat down, Holden did his best to keep his face impassive. This was the last thing he wanted to deal with.</p><p>                “What’s there to say? Naomi’s a good engineer, really good.”</p><p>                Yao nodded, “Yes, didn’t you ever think it was strange that Naomi Nagata was onboard your ship with several advanced degrees in fusion design?”</p><p>                Ade shook her head, “We all came from strange places to end up on the <em>Cant</em>. I got sick of being the boot on the necks of Belters. Getting drummed out of the UNN was honestly the best thing that ever happened to me. I stopped playing system politics.”</p><p>                Yao stopped for a moment. As Holden was about to try to steer the conversation back to the distress call, Yao jumped in again. “What do you know about Naomi Nagata? Really? Do you even know where she is from? Did you know about her belter sympathies? Did you ever consider that she might be an OPA spy?”</p><p>                Holden turned to Yao, “Can I see you outside?” Yao nodded curtly and they walked out into the hallway, and again away from the marine guarding the door.</p><p>                “Why are you trying to pin this on Naomi Nagata?”</p><p>                Yao took a breath, “I’m not, not yet anyway, but there is something off about that woman. She ended up in the middle of nowhere with a whole bunch of degrees and a shadowy background.”</p><p>                Holden took a breath, “Naomi Nagata is not an OPA spy.”</p><p>                Yao looked up at him, “You sound certain of that. Why are you so certain?”</p><p>                Holden answered, “Because, Naomi Nagata is one of mine. She’s Eurekan.”</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>Office of the UN Deputy Undersecretary</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>United Nations Headquarters</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>New York City, Earth</strong>
</p><p>                It may be hypocritical of her, but Chrisjen Avasarala fucking hated shadowy organizations. Unless it was her shadowy organization. Of them, she hated Eureka the least. At least they tended to clean up their own shit.</p><p>                So, when she left a security council meeting after a circle-jerk of a bunch of fools trying to assign motive to the MCR blowing up an ice hauler, she kept her response to swearing as opposed to shooting her monitor.</p><p>                “Goddamn woman! Don’t you ever knock?”</p><p>                A female, but disguised voice chuckled, <em>“Now, why would I do that, Chrisjen?”</em></p><p>The shadowy representative of the City-State of Eureka was literally in shadow on the monitor. Chrisjen was sure there was no way she would ever get a recording of this. Hence, no way she could have her people do their ‘technology thing’ to find out who she was talking to.</p><p>                “If you didn’t know, I’m busy.”</p><p>                <em>“Let me guess, the </em>Canterbury<em>?”</em></p><p>Chrisjen spun, pointing at the screen, “You know something? Was it you who did this?”</p><p>                <em>“No, it wasn’t us. This is a courtesy call about the situation. Eureka is not directly interested in the </em>Canterbury<em>, but the distress call they were responding to is of interest to us.”</em></p><p>“Why would a pirate bait call be of interest to you?” Normally Chrisjen would not stoop to asking, but sometimes Eureka was more forthcoming about information then you would expect.</p><p>                This time, she was right, <em>“Two reasons, Chrisjen. First, there was an Eurekan citizen on the </em>Scopuli<em>. Second, consider this your notification under the Epstein Accords that Eureka is acting under Article Twelve to respond to a matter on Phoebe that falls under our jurisdiction.”</em></p><p>Chrisjen thought for a moment, “Phoebe is a joint MCR/Earth Corp research station.”</p><p>                <em>“It was. The station was destroyed. The Martians responded to a lack of radio contact and then they called us. We’re still investigating. I’ll be back in touch.” </em>The transmission was cut, and her monitor was restored to normal.</p><p>                The Epstein Accords which granted Mars its independence and gave Earth the ability to explore the solar system via the Epstein Drive, were several hundred pages long. They covered everything from tariffs between the planets, to personnel requirements for diplomatic missions, to dividing up every Belt station and asteroid claim. In every official and unofficial analysis of the Accords published for public consumption, Article Twelve was summarized as being the rights and responsibilities of the “Protecting Power” responsible for negotiating the accords. Of course, this “Protecting Power” was never mentioned by name.</p><p>There was no mention of a thousand square miles of Oregon which fell outside of UN jurisdiction. There was no mention of another fifty square miles surrounding the town of Univille, South Dakota that was not part of the North American Trade Union. Nor was there mention of the air corridor and hyperloop connecting the two. To most, Eureka was a nonentity, a whisper that got lost in the day-to-day operations of the hundreds of corporations, thousands of ships, and billions of people that composed humanity. To line officers it was a single presentation at the end of the academy, ‘If you come across something unexplained, something unusual, something inhuman, use this frequency.’ The presentation was then followed by a wink and a nudge telling soldiers that they should contact their own superiors first, but that, under the Epstein Accords, they were technically required to follow procedure.</p><p>And in those cases, Eureka was in and out. A covert ship comes in, handles whatever shit is happening, and then runs off, leaving all the king’s horses and all the king’s men wondering what the fuck just happened. The fact that a ship identifying itself as the <em>Eurekan Space Ship Fargo</em> had been practically farting in a church across the system on a desperate search for a missing citizen was making her take notice. After all, they who smelt it, dealt it.</p><p>
  <strong>MCRN Donnager</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>In the Belt</strong>
</p><p>                Theresa Yao’s eyes widened. For the first time, she doubted she had done the right thing calling Eureka.</p><p>“Captain Holden, you better explain that statement very quickly, because my mind is going a lot of different places right now.”</p><p>                “Naomi Nagata was one of the brightest physicists of our generation. Days after she got her third PhD, she suddenly decided that the life of a scientist wasn’t for her. Naomi left, caught a transport out to Eros, and tried to disappear into the Belt.”</p><p>                “Tried?”</p><p>                “Our representatives on Eros contacted her. She told them she fundamentally disagreed with Eureka’s refusal to share its technology, more specifically, quality of life improvements. She attempted to renounce her citizenship and left. We kept tabs on her over the years. She invested time in the development of engine efficiency and quality of life improvements in the belt. I’m just as surprised as you are that she ended up here.”</p><p>                “So, she’s not a Eurekan Citizen?”</p><p>                “Her renunciation was rejected by our Board of Regents. Not only did she not follow the process, but her family has been part of Eureka for hundreds of years, it would have been a major scandal.”</p><p>                “I take it you’ll want to interrogate her?”</p><p>                Holden nodded, “You can observe of course.”</p><p>                They walked into the next interrogation room where Naomi was waiting. Her arms were crossed, and she rolled her eyes the moment Holden walked in.</p><p>                “What are you doing out here, Holden?”</p><p>                He sat and smiled slightly, “Hello Naomi, how are you? Long time no see.”</p><p>                “The question stands. I’ll also throw in why are you on the MCRN flagship?”</p><p>                Holden shrugged, “Why don’t you start and help me fill in a few gaps?”</p><p>                Naomi smirked a bit, “Alright, we’ll play it your way, Jim, what do you want to know?”</p><p>                “Why did you intercept the <em>Scopuli?</em>”</p><p>                “Because Ade’s an idiot. She logged a distress call. Turned out to be Martian pirate bait.”</p><p>                Yao became indignant and was about to respond when Holden held up his hand.</p><p>                “Describe the conditions on the <em>Scopuli</em>.”</p><p>                “Power was out, reactor was shut down, no crew, no debris.”</p><p>                Holden gave Naomi a look of consternation, “Naomi, please.”</p><p>                Naomi looked back at Holden, “You first, why are you out here, Holden?”</p><p>                Holden gave a little, “There was a Eurekan citizen on the <em>Scopuli</em>. I’m trying to find out what happened.”</p><p>                Naomi’s eyes widened a fraction and she nodded, “Based on the hole generated and the residue pattern, the breaching charge was professionally manufactured by an inner system corporation. It’s not something you’d see from a pirate attack. The engine was shut down, properly, using the scram procedure for that class of freighter. Someone very intentionally parked the ship out there. We were about to cut out the data core when the <em>Cant </em>was attacked. The beacon had an MCRN chip inside, which we discovered a few minutes before the MCRN answered our distress call.”</p><p>                “Any signs of life, a fight, anything like that?”</p><p>                “A few space suits, no significant blood spots, nor any signs that the crew was killed on board. They were either spaced or captured.”</p><p>                Holden nodded, “Thank you, Naomi, you’ve been helpful.”</p><p>                The intercom came up, <em>“Captain Yao to CIC, Captain Yao to CIC on the double please.”</em></p><p>
  <strong>The Docks</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>Ceres Station</strong>
</p><p><em>Not my monkeys, not my circus</em>. It was an Earther phrase, but it fit what Miller was dealing with right now. Miller made his way through the Ceres docks, past fights breaking out between Martian crews to the man he was looking for.</p><p>                “Mister Dawes.”</p><p>                Anderson Dawes grinned a very fake smile, “Agent Miller, what brings you up to my docks?”</p><p>                “Agent Juliette Andromeda Mao.”</p><p>                Dawes’s eyes widened, “<em>Agent </em>Mao, now when she came to me, she was a ‘concerned citizen of the system,’ but you’re saying she’s an Agent?  Agent of what?”</p><p>                Miller growled, “She was my partner.”</p><p>                Dawes shook his head, smiling, “Ah, and as a good partner, you want to track her down, eh?”</p><p>                Miller ground his teeth, “Dawes, you are a smart man, you have some notion of who I work for.”</p><p>                Dawes stroked his beard, “I never thought Star Helix was that invested in its employees.”</p><p>                Miller’s eyes narrowed, “Who I <em>really</em> work for. We let you and your OPA buddies play revolutionary out here because we don’t care if it doesn’t impact us. You’re small tubers, Dawes. If you start impacting us, by, say, putting one of our people in danger, suddenly you’ll start experiencing the impact of a massive boot on a baked tuber.”</p><p>                Dawes’s eyes widened as it became clear that Miller wasn’t playing his usual game today, “Julie came to me because she found out her father was up to no good on Phoebe, possible bioweapon research that could impact the Belt. I lent her the <em>Scopuli</em> and a crew to check it out. Then, she disappeared, and the ship was found by the <em>Canterbury</em>.”</p><p>                “Great, tell me something I don’t know.”</p><p>                Dawes held up his commlink and tapped it to Miller’s, “The<em> Scopuli’s</em> trajectory prior to losing it’s transponder.”</p><p>                Miller tipped his hat, “Pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Dawes. Also, a suggestion?”</p><p>                “Yes?”</p><p>                “Give the Martian crews their water, it’s not a fight you need right now, and it’ll lose you more PR points than you can afford.”</p><p>                Dawes nodded, “I intended to.”</p><p>
  <strong>MCRN Donnager</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>In the Belt</strong>
</p><p>                Yao and Holden walked past the MMC sentries on duty into the CIC, as the yeoman on duty handed Yao a bulb of tea and Yao took her position at the plotting table and looked to Lieutenant Waterman, “Report.”</p><p>                “We have an unknown ship decelerating hard toward us. It does not match anything in the warbook and it is not responding to hails.”</p><p>                Holden looked at the drive signature, “It’s not Eurekan, that’s for sure, but it looks cleaner than what you would see in the Belt.”</p><p>                “Brig to Captain, Ms. Nygaard is demanding to speak with you.”</p><p>                Yao and Holden shared a look. Holden knew she would rather have this conversation with her Executive Officer, but he was on the <em>Deacon</em>. Given the choice between Holden and Lieutenant Waterman, her rather junior Tactical Officer, apparently Holden was filling in as a sounding board.</p><p>                Holden shrugged, “At the very least she may know who’s coming up on us. Which reminds me,” Holden triggered his comm, “Andy, report to the CIC.” At the same time, Yao called Nygaard to the CIC as well.</p><p>                Andy had apparently only been a short distance away because he reached the CIC in less than three minutes, “Captain Holden.”</p><p>                “Andy, what are your thoughts on this?” Holden gestured to the drive signature readout.</p><p>                Yao interjected, “Nuclear attack reconstruction, drive signature analysis, I get the feeling that Sheriff means something different in Eureka than on Mars.”</p><p>                Andy smiled slightly, “Captain, when you work with the people in my town, you tend to pick up some unusual things in the realm of science.” He looked at the drive signature and frowned, “I can’t say with any degree of certainty, but it seems to be distorted somehow.” Andy started tapping the screen, amplifying parts of the sensory readouts.</p><p>                As Andy continued, Ade Nygaard arrived, Yao turned to her, “Ms. Nygaard, as we speak your face is on every screen and terminal in the system, saying effectively, that Mars destroyed the <em>Canterbury</em>. This is not true, and those sorts of untruths can lead to an interstellar conflict. We need you to recant your statement.”</p><p>                Ade shook her head, “No, what I said was that we identified a beacon made of Martian naval technology. That was true.”</p><p>                Holden interjected, “True as it might be, the system has taken it the way Captain Yao implied. I urge you to reconsider.</p><p>                Yao turned to Lieutenant Waterman, “Punch up the Bogey.” She then pointed at the screen, “That is the plume of a ship accelerating hard toward us, it’s not Martian or UN and it won’t answer our hails.”</p><p>                Holden added, “We don’t know who they are, or what they want.”</p><p>
  <strong>Aircar Parking</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>United Nations Headquarters</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>New York</strong>
</p><p>                Franklin Degraaf, former UN Ambassador to Mars, had a terrible day. His best friend’s daughter had just figuratively stabbed him in the chest, he had lost his job, his home, and all for a fleeting victory. After getting in his aircar, he realized he might just lose a bit more. His private car was already occupied.</p><p>                Degraaf sighed, “If you want my wallet, you’re welcome to it, it’s not like my day could get any shittier.”</p><p>                A light clicked on in the rear seat, instead of the unregistered burglar he was expecting, he was met by a middle-aged woman, with cropped hair and a business suit.</p><p>                “I’m not a burglar, Ambassador, I’m here to ask for your assistance.”</p><p>                “Considering I’m no longer an Ambassador, I don’t know how much assistance I can offer.”</p><p>                “Your assistance would come in the form of a job. Recently, my people have discovered that we need to do more in the world of interplanetary relations. You, arguably, have more experience in developing those relations than anyone in the system.”</p><p>                Degraaf shook his head, “I just burnt bridges on both planets.”</p><p>                “Considering my people’s position in the system, that’s probably an asset.”</p><p>                “’Your people,’ what are you, a defense conglomerate?”</p><p>                The woman smirked, “of a sort.” The woman handed him an old fashioned, embossed business card.</p><p>                <em>Eva Thorne</em><br/>
<em>                Director of Administration</em><br/>
<em>                City State of Eureka</em></p><p>“I know we’re not the Mariner Valley, but humanity’s favorite small town, might be an acceptable alternative for you and your husband. Talk it over with him and comm me. My number’s on the back.” Eva exited the aircar, leaving Degraaf staring at her business card.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thanks for reading, please review and kudo if you feel called to.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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